Adjustable hat



fiuv. 8 1932. .1. A. MENDOSA ADJUSTABLE HAT Filed Feb. 11, 1932 INVENTOR dA.M12 do 8a Patented Nov. 8, 1932 rrsn STATS JOHN A. MENDOSA, OF MANTECA, CALIFORNIA ADJUSTABLE HAT Application filed February 11, 1932. Serial No. 592,259.

This invention relates to hats of the light, loose woven straw type having high sloping crowns and wide brims. These are commonly known as Mexican hats and are worn extensively by agricultural and other outdoor workers in hot weather. Such hats being loose woven lend themselves naturally to adjustment for different head sizes, so that with a few different stock sizes adjustments can be made from these to fit the head of anyperson.

A device for thus adjusting such hats for head sizes has already been developed and is in use to some extent. This device however is so arran ed that the extent to which the hat may be adjusted is more limited than is actually necessary and the band which holds the hat material in its adjusted position tends when tightened to crawl up the crown. This lessens the effectiveness of the adjustment and presents an unattractive appearance.

The principal object of my invention is to provide an improved hat adjusting device which eliminates the above objectionable features and which permits a large range of adjustments being effected, while presenting a neatappearance under all conditions.

A further object of the invention is to produce a simple and inexpensive device and yet one which will be exceedingly effective for the purpose for which it is designed.

These objects I accomplish by means of 3 such structure and relative arrangement of parts as will fully appear by a perusal of the following specification and claims.

In the drawing similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views:

Fig. 1 is a perspective front view of a hat with my improved adjustment device there- Fig. 2 is a similar view looking at the back of the hat.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary vertical section on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the front of the hat showing the guide and support for the adjustment buckle.

Referring now more particularly to the characters of reference on the drawing, the numeral 1 denotes the brim of the hat which merges into the taper sided crown 2, the hat being made of flat loose woven and limp straw 3 as usual. Extending around the base of the crown is a non-stretchable band 4 preferably of neat and ornamental design which at the back of the hat is rigidly sewed to the crown at the base for a certain arcuate distance, as shown at 5.

At the front of the hat the ends of the band are separated and are of sufiicient length to overlap each other some distance. Such ends are passed between the bars of a metal adjustment buckle 6 of standard character so that they will project in opposite directions, as shown in Fig. 1. V7 hen the band ends are pulled in such directions therefore the band will be tightened about the hat, causing the straws to be moved closer together and the diameter of the head size of the crown to be lessened.

The buckle is not secured to the hat but is supported against vertical movement by the overhanging top flange 7 of a metal plate 8 which abuts against the front of the crown at the base and is secured by stitching 9 which passes through the plate, the straw and through the leather sweat pad 10 secured inside the crown at the front.

The flange 7 of the plate 8 holds the buckle and the hand against upward movement from its desired position at the base of the crown, so that there is no tendency for it and the band to creep up as it would otherwise do owing to the taper of the crown. This allows the length of the sewed portion 5 of the band to be shorter than would otherwise be the case and thus a greater circumferential length of the crown is lSTL free for adjustment. This of course permits a greater of adjustments to be made in any one hat than would otherwise be possible.

The flange and plate are constantly longer than the buckle 6 so that even if the latter is shifted somewhat to one side or the other of an exact central position on the hat due to an uneven pull on the band ends it will still be properly engaged by the flange.

In operation therefore it is only necessary when decreasing the head size of the hat, to pull on both ends of the band simultaneously, without any great care being necessary to see 5 that the pulling pressure on both ends is even. This is because, as above stated, the buckle can be shifted in position without loosening the holding engagement with the plate flange and without one portion of the band being possibly tighter than the other.

From the foregoing description it will be readily seen that I have produced such a device as substantially fulfills the objects of the invention as set forth herein.

While this specification sets forth in detail the present and preferred construction of the device, still in practice such deviations from such detail may be resorted to as do not form r a departure from the spirit of the invention,

as defined by the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and useful and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A hat having an adjustable band surrounding the lower part of the crown thereof and fixedly secured centrally of its ends to the crown, an adjustment buckle engaging the ends of the band, and means on the crown opposite the band securing means detachably engaging the buckle and holding the same down against the base of the crown.

2. A hat having an adjustable band surrounding the low-er part of the crown thereof and fixedly secured centrally of its ends to the crown, an adjustment buckle engaging the ends of the band, a plate secured against the crown at the base and againstwhich the buckle bears when the hand is tight, and an overhanging flange along the top edge of the 40 plate engaging the top of the buckle.

3. A hat having an adjustable band surrounding the lower part of the crown thereof and fixedly secured centrally of its ends to the crown, an adjustment buckle engaging the ends of the band, a plate secured against the crown in alinement with the buckle, and an element projecting outwardly from the plate and slidably engaging the top edge of the buckle to hold the same down against the base of the crown.

a 4. A hat having an adjustable band surrounding the lower part of the crown thereof and fixedly secured centrally of its ends to the crown, an adjustment buckle engaging the ends of the band, and ahorizont-al flange mounted on and projecting outwardly from the crown of the hat and engaging the top edge of the buckle.

In testimony whereofl affix my signature.

JOHN A, MENDOSA. 

